“You are heroes, here to support heroes,” James Savage, acting president of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Society, told the 500 cops assembled outside Bronx Supreme Court.

The four officers charged in the Amadou Diallo killing were moved to tears by fellow cops as they emerged from their first pretrial proceeding yesterday – to a heroes’ welcome of embraces and cheers.

“You are heroes, here to support heroes,” James Savage, acting president of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Society, told the 500 cops assembled outside Bronx Supreme Court. The cops waved banners and called out warmly to the four suspects by nicknames and first names.

The four – officers Kenneth Boss, Sean Carroll, Edward McMellon and Richard Murphy – were in court for the first in a series of routine appearances before they are tried early next year for allegedly murdering Diallo.

The unarmed West African street vendor died in the vestibule of his apartment building after the four white cops fired at him a total of 41 times. The February shooting prompted loud community protests and accusations of police brutality and racism.

Multiple sources among the legal teams say those yet-to-be-filed motions will include attempts to get the indictment thrown out entirely because of suspected quorum problems on the grand jury.

Also, in the first public rift among the lawyers, Marvyn Kornberg, who represents Carroll, said he would try to have the trial shifted from The Bronx – a move lawyers for the other three cops haven’t yet decided on.

Outside, as the four cops sped away from their warm welcome and off to their newly-assigned desk jobs, the crowd of cops quickly turned cold – at the sight of the Rev. Al Sharpton.

“Tawana! Tawana! Tawana!” they jeered at Sharpton, who stood waving his arm to egg them on in the bizarre, street-corner faceoff.